The Functions of Congress

Congress has five main functions: lawmaking, representing the people,
performing oversight, helping constituents, and educating the public.

Lawmaking

The primary function of Congress is to pass rules that all Americans must
obey, a function called lawmaking. Congress deals in a huge range
of matters, from regulating television to passing a federal budget to voting on
gun control. Many of the bills considered by Congress originate with the
executive branch, but only Congress can create laws. Parties, interest groups,
and constituents all influence members of Congress in their vote choices, and
members also compromise and negotiate with one another to reach agreements. A
common practice is logrolling, in which members agree to vote for
one another’s bills. For more on lawmaking, see “The Legislative Process”
section later in this chapter.

Representing the People

Congress represents the people of the United States. Members serve their
constituents, the people who live in the district from which
they are elected. The old adage that “all politics is local” applies to
Congress: Members must please their constituents if they want to stay in office,
and every issue must therefore be considered from the perspectives of those
constituents. There are three theories of representation, or how people choose
their representatives: trustee representation, sociological representation, and
agency representation.

Trustee Representation

According to the theory of trustee representation, the
people choose a representative whose judgment and experience they trust. The
representative votes for what he or she thinks is right, regardless of the
opinions of the constituents. Because the constituents trust their
representative’s judgment, they will not be angry every time they disagree
with the representative. A constituent who views his or her representative
as a trustee need not pay close attention to political events. For key
issues, the constituent likely monitors the representative’s votes, but for
other matters, the constituent likely trusts the representative and does not
monitor votes too closely.

Sociological Representation

According to the theory of sociological representation,
the people choose a representative whose ethnic, religious, racial,
social, or educational background resembles their own. Because the views of
people with similar backgrounds tend to be similar, the representative will
act in ways that suit his or her constituents. Thus, constituents do not
need to monitor their representatives too closely.

Agency

Representation According to the theory of agency
representation, the people choose a representative to carry out
their wishes in Congress. If the representative does not do what the
constituents want, then the constituents “fire” the member by electing
someone else in the next election. Those who view their representatives as
agents tend to closely monitor their representatives because they must know
what the representative does in order to keep him or her accountable. This
theory is also known as the instructed-delegate representation.